1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an animal fiber as a filler of wadding used for beddings, cushions, clothes etc., and in particular to an animal fiber having a voluminous and comfortable feeling, suppressing decomposition of proteins such as beta-keratin and preventing a foul smell inherent in such protein and having an excellent durability, and, at the same time, being capable of enhancement of health as well as therapeutic treatment through an effect of far infrared ray.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Animal fibers such as feathers and wool have lately used widely as wadding for high quality beddings for their excellent warmth-keeping performance, lightness and comfortable feeling.
Such animal fibers, which contain as major components proteins such as keratin, have a defect of decreasing in bulkiness with the lapse of time in use, this resulting in decreased bulkiness and an increased foul smell inherent in proteins due to decreased air permeability. In order to avoid such phenomenon it is essential to keep the required bulkiness to ensure good air permeability.
Such animal fibers are generally treated with a large amount of surfactants for the purpose of deodoration and degreasing, but the use of surfactants injures animal fibers to lower their durability, and also causes a decrease of slidability due to degreasing as well as reducing restoration of the voluminous feeling, these resulting in air permeability of animal fibers. Reduced air permeability of animal fibers gives rise to a foul smell as mentioned above, at the same time resulting in massing for further loss of bulkiness and an increase of the degree of the foul smell in a vicious circle. Feather, from its form and structure in particular, has a behavior to move in one direction to be massed in a corner of quilted squares or narrowed portions.
An animal fiber degreased with a surfactant is, so called, in a state of its surface protective layer being stripped off, hence it is decomposed by an alkali contained in sweat during sleep and is crumbled into decay for early loss of bulkiness and deterioration of the comfortable feel as well as the durability.
To sum up, animal fibers for use as wadding such as feathers involve numerous problems in respect of bulkiness, feel as well as durability caused by oil and fat components as a protective layer being removed by the surfactant.
Meanwhile, lately, the effects of far infrared rays of enhancing blood circulation and restoration from fatigue, relieving neuralgia and muscle pain and reactivating the function of stomach and bowels etc. have been made clear and in the field of bedding, too, those utilizing far infrared rays have been proposed.
In Japanese Laid-Open Utility Model 46159/88, for instance, a proposal is made for flexible and permeable quilting provided with a plurality of flat strips as far infrared heaters with an electric circuit controller and wadded with cotton, wool or feather.
A wadded quilt in such a structure, however, has a number of disadvantages as follows;
(1) The structure is complicated and expensive.
(2) The use of the flat strips gives rise to a feeling of physical disorder and loss of soft touch as well as comfortable feeling, this interfering with comfortable sleeping in bed.
(3) The flat strips interfere with the quilt's hygroscopicity of moisture and sweat as well as its air permeability, this being unsanitary.
(4) Switching on/off manipulation is troublesome. Moreover, such manipulation is likely to give the user an unnecessary impression that the user is being treated mechanically, which often fails to hold long.